Handling and storage means for marine hatch covers



G. E. MEESE May 5, 1964 HANDLING AND STORAGE MEANS FOR MARINE HATCH COVERS 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed April 19, 1961 INVENTOR. GEORGE E. MEESE M g Claw/M.

May 5, 1964 G. E. MEESE HANDLING AND STORAGE MEANS FOR MARINE HATCH COVERS 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed April 19, 1961 INVENTOR. GEORGE E. MEESE May 5, 1964 e. E. MEESE 3,131,922

HANDLING AND STORAGE MEANS FOR MARINE HATCH COVERS Filed April 19, 1961 s Sheets-Sheet a FIG. 6

. 'INVENTOR. GEORGE 5. MEESE WAJ.

United States Patent 3,131,922 HANDLING AND STORAGE MEANS FOR MARINE HATCH COVERS George E. Meese, 194 Acton Road, Annapolis, Md. Filed Apr. 19, 1961, Ser. No. 104,068 Claims. (Cl. 26818) This invention relates to marine hatch covers and more particularly to improved means for the handling and storage of hatch covers.

Hatch covers for marine use present special problems of handling and stowage, particularly when it is desired that the entire hatch be entirely open for the eflicient loading and unloading of cargo. A principal means presently employed for stowing hatch covers comprise lateral pivotal mountings for a plurality of panels each of which can be moved about its pivots to a vertical position and all may be stowed in vertical abutting relationship at one end of the hatch coaming. With this arrangement it will be apparent that a portion of the hatch opening is at all times occupied by the stowed hatches. A principal object of the present invention is to provide an improved hatch stowage system whereby the hatches may be stowed entirely clear of the hatch opening.

Still another object of the invention is to provide improved means for removing the hatch covers to their position of stowage, clear of the hatch opening, and for replacing the hatch covers over the hatch opening.

More specifically, it is an object of the invention to provide improved means for the handling and stowage of hatch covers whereby a hatch cover made up of a series of independent panels may be moved horizontally over a hatch opening towards or away from a stowage position beyond one end of the hatchway, means being provided at the stowage position for elevating the panels vertically one above the other, the elevating means alfording stowage for the panels until such time as they are to be replaced over the hatch opening by the horizontal moving means.

Other objects and their attendant advantages will become apparent as the following detailed description is read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a side elevation of a typical barge showing schematically the general arrangement of the hatch cover handling and stowage means of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged rear end elevational view schematically showing the stowage arrangement of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged, broken, partly schematic perspective view of the handling and stowage means of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged vertical cross sectional view taken substantially on the line 4-4 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged detailed view showing one means for connecting the hatch cover panels to the horizontal moving means of the invention; and

FIG. 6 is a horizontal, broken elevational view showing a form of drum means which is susceptible of use with the horizontal conveying means of the present invention.

Referring now to the drawings, FIG. 1 discloses a typical barge 10 having conventional bow and stem parts 12, 14 and a hatch coaming 16 vertically connected to the barge deck 17 and upon which rest a plurality of hatch cover panels 18 adapted to close a hatch opening 20 encompassed by the side'and end walls 21, 22 of the coaming 16 as shown in FIG. 3.

The hatch cover panels 18 are supported for rolling movement on the upper edge of the coaming side walls 21 and if desired the panels may be sealed against moisture by the provision of sealing means Partly disclosed in FIG. 4 and more particularly described in my prior Patent No. 2,915,033. As shown in FIG. 4, the sealing means, which form no part of the present invenice tion, consist of a pair of gaskets 24, 26 which are carried respectively on the outboard side of the coaming 16 and on the sides of each panel by a part 28 which overhangs the coaming sidewall. A seal is effected between the gaskets 24, 26 by means of a channel shaped member 30 having vertical knife edges which simultaneously engage in sealing relationship the gaskets 24, 26. Means (not shown) are provided for moving the member 30 vertically into and out of sealing relationship with the gaskets 24, 26. The fore and aft edges of the panels may be sealed by complementary gaskets and knife edges on adjacent panels and for a complete description of the hatch seal outlined herein reference is made to my prior patent mentioned above.

Rolling support for the hatch panels 18 is afforded by rails 32 welded to the upper edge of the coaming side walls 21 and each of the panels is provided with at least two rollers 36 on each side which engage the rails 32 and are rotatably connected to the panels by means of stub shafts 38 which extend between the outer walls 40 of the panels and an inwardly spaced web 42 whose upper edge is welded or otherwise attached to the underside of the hatch panel tops 44.

In accordance with the invention means are provided for moving the panels horizontally from their position covering the hatch opening as shown in FIG. 1 to a position of stowage clear of the hatch at the respective opposite ends of the barge where the panels are stowed by elevating means which are indicated generally at 48 in FIGS. 1 and 2 and more particularly described in detail hereinafter.

With particular reference to FIG. 3 the means for moving the panels horizontally on the coaming rails 32- comprises a flexible cable 50 whose opposite ends are respectively connected in winding and unwinding relationship to a drum member 52, more particularly shown in FIG. 6, which is provided with a center flange 54 dividing the drum into two parts 56, 58. One end of the cable 50 is wrapped around the part 56 of the drum in clockwise relationship and the other end of the cable is wrapped around the other part 58 of the drum in counterclockwise relationship so that as the drum is rotated by operation of its shaft 6%) in one direction or the other, the cable is fed off of one part of the drum While it is simultaneously taken up on the other part. The cable is led from one part, say part 56, of the drum 52 outboard of the coaming toward the midpart of the vessel and passes through a sheave 62 and returns to the other part 58 of the drum. It will be apparent that where the vessel has a relatively short length, the sheave 62 would be disposed adjacent the opposite end of the vessel rather than at the midpart as disclosed in FIG. 3 but for a relatively long barge as shown in FIG. 1, it is more convenient for one-half of the cover panels to be moved towards one end of the barge for stowage while the other half are moved towards the opposite end. With this last arrangement a second sheave 64 is provided for a second cable 66 which operates identically to the cable 50 and the sheaves 62, 64 may be connected together by a suitable turnbuckle 68 which may be operated to move the sheaves 62, 64 towards or away from each other to adjust the tension in the cables 50, 66. Desirably, the sheaves and, hence the cables, may be supported above the deck 17 of the vessel by means of suitable guides 70 whose lower ends are pivotally connected to suitable bracket means 72 welded or otherwise attached to the deck 17.

Each of the hatch panels may be releasably connected to each cable for horizontal movement thereby, in any of a variety of ways, one such means being shown in FIGS. 4 and 5. There a suitable bracket 74 is illustrated as being welded or otherwise attached to the upper surj SH . 3 I face of 1 the gasket-carrying member and ending outwardly beyond the memberfi so as to prev end having an aperture thereincapable of slidabiy receiva connecting pin "76 having a linurb head 7%; and an L aped foot rial. The cable 5%} is provided at longitudinally spaced intervals corresponding to the number of with a series of links 312 which include an enlarged t ntally disposed center link 34 arranged to receive the foot of the connecting pin 7'which may be readily nnected from the link 34' by, the operator merely grasping. the knurled head 76 and aligning the foot @tl with the opening of link 84 and then withdrawing pin Lilllill the'i'oot is above the link whereupon the panel is disconnected from the cable V The cable 54) maybe moved in opposite directions by means of a suitable motor 86 shown in EEG. '3. The motor may be a uni-directionaltype which is operatively connected through a fluid coupling 8'7 to a combined redtction and reverse gear (3% of a rtype well known in the art.- Thc'gear 8% maybe provided with a pair of right larly disposed output shafts 90, 92 each of which is connected respectively to one side of conventional clutch/brakes 94, 96; The opposite side of the clutch/ bra e 94 is connected to the later described elevating gear the opposite side of clutch-brake is connected to the shaft 69 carrying the cable drum 52, the opposite end of shaft being supported in a suitable bearing connected to the deck'1'7 of the vessel. It will be apparent that when the reverse gear is operated to drive the output shafts in one direction and the clutch-brake is operated to'conneot shaft 99 to shaft 60 the cableitl will be moved in one direction or the other depending upon the operating condition of the reverse. gear.

When the hatchcpening 2% is to be uncoveredthe drum 52 is operated in a clockwise direction inyPlG. 3

5 4: through shaft 92 and clutch/brake 94 whose opposite side is connected to an-extension' shaft132 integrally connected to the right hand lower sproc'et shaft 113 Extension shaft 132 carries a bevel gearllad meshing with a second bevel gear 13% carried at one end of a cross shaft 138 whose oppcsite'ends are rotatably supported in suitable bearings 14%. The end of'sh-aft 133 opposite gear 136. carries a third bevel gear 142 meshingwith a gear 144 carried on an extension of the lower'sprocket shaft 118 on the opposite side of the vessel.. From the foregoing it will be seen that the shafts 118 may be operated in either direction by connecting extension shaft 132 through the clutch/ brake 94w the reduction gearoutput shaft 92, when said gear is positioncdto drive the aforesaid shaft in the desired direction.

In operation, assuming that the panels are all disposed on the coaming so as to cover the'hatch opening, when itnis desired to uncover the opening, the operator first insures that each of the connecting pins 'ld is engaged with the center'link 84 0f each of the. series of, links along the cable; 59.. The. operator then starts the motor as with the clutch/ brakes disengaged and thereafter he engages the clutch 95' soI as to cause the drum 52 to v operate in =a.clockwise direction in FIG. 3 and cause all tocause the cable and the attached panels to be moved toward the barge end. Aligned with the side coaming walls 21 are auxiliary track members 1% which desirably be spaced from the tracks on the coaming side walls so as to aiford gaps. 191 through which the 'vertically operable sealing means shown in FIG. 4 (but omitted from FlG. 3.for reasons of simplicity) may be actuated. As the upper and lower. parts of the cable fitl are r espectively woundfonto and off of the drum, the hatch cover panel nearest-the end of the barge is, rolled onto the auxiliary tracks itltl and into engagement with" 'ble stop means 192 carried onan athwartship member fixed adjacent the ends of the track 1%, whereupon the operatorstops the drum 52 by suitable operation of the clutch/brake 95d and the panel is now in readiness to be stowed by the aforementioned elevating means constructed in accordance with the inventionand which will non be described. V

The elevating means comprises a pair of frames 1' 4, ills? disposed on opposite sides of the vessel adjacent the sides of the auxiliary tracks 1-30. Each frame consists of a pair of upright legs 168, 11% interconnected at their upper endsby'horiZontal member-S112 as shown in PlGS. l and 3. Thelegs of the framemay be supported in any or" a'variet of ways; for example, they may be bent at their lower ends as shown in FIG. 4 and a triangular web member 11 may be welded to the deck 17 and the lower bent part of each of the legs. Rotat-a-bly supported, as by pillar bearings 116, between the upper and lower ends of the legs of each frame are a pair of shafts .118, firleach carrying adjacent their opposite ends sprocket wheels 122, 124. Connected to each pair of sprocket wheels122, 124- is a sprocket chain 126 having con- 'nccted thereto at suitably spaced intervals a plurality of tangs 128 which are adapted to be advanced by thesprocket'chains into engagement with lifting ears 12-9 which are fixed in pairs to. the opposite sides of each panel 1% and are spaced apart a distance equal to the spacing between the sprocket chains.

The lower shafts 118 are driven to operate the sprocket chains by means of the motored and reverse gear 83 achieved by'the provision of'the elongated horizontalof the panels to be moved by the cable towards :theend oftheebarge until thatpanel :which is nearesttheend of the hatch opening has been moved onto the auxiliary tracks and there stopped. 1 Should the, operator permit the panel torbe fmoved into the stops 1&2 momentarily before disengaging the clutch/ brake $6, the fluid'cou pling $7 permits the motor '86 to continueto operatewithjout damage or without stalling as a result'of the momentary overload. After, the operator hasdisengaged the clutch/brake 96, he then pulls the connectingpin 76' of this first panel upwardly to disconnect it fromthe cable 5t}. Thereafter, the operator-engages the clutch 4 to cause the sprocket shafts 1-18 tobe operated in a dircc tion which'causes the tangs 128- on the inner sides of the chains 126 to be elevated into engagement the ears 129 on the sides'of the panel, continued opertion of the shafts 118 causing the panel-to belifted clear of the auxiliary tracks lllll! to a height sufficient to permit the next panel to be moved onto -the,tra ck .beieaththe,

At this point the operator disengages 7 all are supportedone above the other on theelevating means as shown inFlG. 2 with the last panel remaining on the auxiliary track ltltl.

'When it is desired to replace the pane s over the hatch opening, the operator merely reverses the procedure just described, making certain that each of the-connecting pins is engaged with its appropriate link before the cable 5%} is operated in the reverse-direction.

To insure that the panels will: not he accidentally displaced fromtlie tangs when in their elevated position, each ear may be provided .with a pair of "downwardly extending'side'flanges 146 adapted to fit down over the sides of the tangs 128 as shown in FlGS. 3 and Because the panels are sealed along their front and rear edges by engagementof a lateralknifeedge carried by one of the panels with a gasket carried by the next adjacent panel, it will be apparent that when thepanels are moved into sealingrelaltionship, thel'ast mentioned gaskets may not yield uniformly thusmaking a lost mo tion connection between each panel and the cabl'eiil desirable. In 7 accordance with the inventio'n this is linked and the pins 76, the latter having sufficient longi tudinal freedom of movement within the confines of the",

to compensate for any lack 'o'f uniform yield in the gaskets. Without this described lost motion arrangement it would be apparent that it might not be possible in each instance to move all of the panels into tight sealing engagement with each other by the usual well known dogging means.

From the foregoing description it will be apparent that the present invention afiords an improved cans for handling and stowing hatch covers with a minimum of eilort and in such a way that the covers are removed entirely clear of the hatch opening while being capable of being compactly stowed on the vessel clear of the working space thereof and without the necessity of being removed or replaced by dockside crane means and without having to occupy working space on the dock itself. The present invention, though by no means limited to such use, is particularly suitable for use with barges wmch are frequently utilized at small terminals not properly equipped to either handle or stow heavy hatch covers.

It will be apparent, of course, that the invention susceptible of a Wide vmety of changes and modifications without, however, departing from the scope and spirit of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In combination with a Vessel having a deck and hatch opening through said deck, a plurality of hatch cover panels adapted to cover said opening in side-byside relationship, support means for said panels afiording a guide for horizontal sliding movement of said panels over said opening towards and away from at least one side thereof, stationary support means on said vessel extending beyond the side of said opening towards which said panels are slidable and being in alignment with said first support means, said second support means having a dimension in the direction of movement of said panels suilicient to accommodate at least one of said panels in its horizontal position, a horizontally movable, flexible element extending from said second support means along a line parallel and equal to the path of movement of said panels over said opening, means for releasably connecting each of said panels to said flexible element, means for intermittently controlling the direction and operation of said flexible element, elevating means adjacent said second support means, a plurality of panel engaging elements carried in spaced relationship on said vertically movable member, each of said elements being adapted to engage a panel on said second support means and move said panel vertically from said support means when said element is moved past said support means by said vertically movable member, and means for intermittently controlling the direction and operation of said vertically movable member to successively cause said panel engaging elements to move panels vertically onto or off of said second support means as said panels are moved horizontally onto or off of said second support means by the operation of said flexible element.

2. In combination with a vessel having a deck and a hatch opening lying in a horizontal plane through said deck, a plurality of horizontally arranged hatch cover panels slidable in side-by-side relationship over said opening, conveying means for sliding said panels towards or away from one end of said opening, horizontal stationary support means on said vessel in close adjacency to but beyond said one end or" said opening on to which said panels may be successively slid by said conveying means, elevating means adjacent said stationary support means and including a plurality of vertically spaced panel engaging means successively engageable with respective panels slid onto said support means to move said panels vertically away from said support means as they are successively slid thereon by said conveying means, and means for intermittently controlling the direction of operation of said conveying means and said elevating means so as to effect movement of said panels towards or away from said hatch opening.

3. In combination with a vessel having a deck and batch opening lying in a horizontal plane through said deck, a plurality of horizontally arranged hatch cover panels slidable in side-by-side relationship over said opening, a horizontally movable flexible element extending in a line parallel to the path of movement of said panels, means for releasably connecting each of said panels to said flexible element for sliding movement towards or away from one end of said opening, horizontal stationary support means on said vessel in close adjaceny to but beyond said one end of said opening on to which said panels may be successively slid by said flexible element, and elevating means adjacent said stationary support means and including a plurality of vertically spaced panel engaging means successively engageable with respective panels slid onto said support means to move said panels vertically away from said support means as they are successively slid thereon by said flexible element.

4. The combination of claim 3 wherein said flexible element extends along one side of said hatch opening, and including reversible rotatable drive means operatively connected to said flexible element for controlling the direction of movement thereof.

5. The combination of claim 4 wherein the elevating means comprise vertically arranged, endless sprocket chain means, tangs at spaced intervals on said sprocket chain means and adapted to be moved successively by said chain means into or out of engagement with a panel on said stationary support means so as to move said panel vertically ofi of or onto said support means depending upon the direction of movement of said chain means, and reversible drive means operatively connected to said chain means for efiecting movement of panels carried thereby towards or away from said stationary support means depending upon whether said opening is to be covered or uncovered.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,760,459 Kummerman Aug. 26, 1956 2,897,949 Huisking Aug. 4, 1959 2,948,382 Russell Aug. 9, 1960 FOREIGN PATENTS 739,303 France Oct. 25, 1932 

1. IN COMBINATION WITH A VESSEL HAVING A DECK AND HATCH OPENING THROUGH SAID DECK, A PLURALITY OF HATCH COVER PANELS ADAPTED TO COVER SAID OPENING IN SIDE-BYSIDE RELATIONSHIP, SUPPORT MEANS FOR SAID PANELS AFFORDING A GUIDE FOR HORIZONTAL SLIDING MOVEMENT OF SAID PANELS OVER SAID OPENING TOWARDS AND AWAY FROM AT LEAST ONE SIDE THEREOF, STATIONARY SUPPORT MEANS ON SAID VESSEL EXTENDING BEYONG THE SIDE OF SAID OPENING TOWARDS WHICH SAID PANELS ARE SLIDABLE AND BEING IN ALIGNMENT WITH SAID FIRST SUPPORT MEANS, SAID SECOND SUPPORT MEANS HAVING A DIMENSION IN THE DIRECTION OF MOVEMENT OF SAID PANELS SUFFICIENT TO ACCOMMODATE AT LEAST ONE OF SAID PANELS IN ITS HORIZONTAL POSITION, A HORIZONTALLY MOVABLE, FLEXIBLE ELEMENT EXTENDING FROM SAID SECOND SUPPORT MEANS ALONG A LINE PARALLEL AND EQUAL TO THE PATH OF MOVEMENT OF SAID PANELS OVER SAID OPENING, MEANS FOR RELEASABLY CONNECTING EACH OF SAID PANELS TO SAID FLEXIBLE ELEMENT, MEANS FOR INTERMITTENTLY CONTROLLING THE DIRECTION AND OPERATION OF SAID FLEXIBLE ELEMENT, ELEVATING MEANS ADJACENT SAID SECOND SUPPORT MEANS, A PLURALITY OF PANEL ENGAGING ELEMENTS CARRIED IN SPACED RELATIONSHIP ON SAID VERTICALLY MOVABLE MEMBER, EACH OF SAID ELEMENTS BEING ADAPTED TO ENGAGE A PANEL ON SAID SECOND SUPPORT MEANS AND MOVE SAID PANEL VERTICALLY FROM SAID SUPPORT MEANS WHEN SAID ELEMENT IS MOVED PAST SAID SUPPORT MEANS BY SAID VERTICALLY MOVABLE MEMBER, AND MEANS FOR INTERMITTENTLY CONTROLLING THE DIRECTION AND OPERATION OF SAID VERTICALLY MOVABLEY MEMBER TO SUCCESSIVELY CAUSE SAID PANEL ENGAGING ELEMENTS TO MOVE PANELS VERTICALLY ONTO OR OFF OF SAID SECOND SUPPORT MEANS AS SAID PANELS ARE MOVED HORIZONTALLY ONTO OR OFF OF SAID SECOND SUPPORT MEANS BY THE OPERATION OF SAID FLEXIBLE ELEMENT. 